Combined kitchen table and folding ironing board



Sept. 12, 1933. P. P. SPRINGER 'COMBINED KITCHEN.TABLE} AND FOLDING IRONING BOARD Filed May 2, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l I. I l I I.| I| llllllllllH llllllllUH LII lll PP SPP/N65? INVENTR.

A TTRNEY.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR BWM ATTORNEY.

Sept. l2, 1933. P. P. SPRINGER COMBINED KITCHEN TABLE AND FOLDING IRONING BOARD Filed May 2, 1951 Patented Sept. 12, 1933 UNITED STATES COMBINED KITCHEN TABLE AND FOLD- ING IRONING BOARD Peter P. Springer, Rock Island, Ill.

Application May 2, 1931. Serial No. 534,545

3 Claims.

The present invention relates to a combined kitchen table and folding ironing board and cornprises among its objects to produce an improved article of the nature indicated; to provide an 5 article of the character indicated in which the ironing board may be folded and let down into the inside of a kitchen table and then the top of the table may be brought over into closed position so that the nature of the structure will l not be apparent when'the table is in condition for use as such; to provide a device of the character indicated which is easily olded into collapsed position or unfolded into condition for use as an ironing board; and such further objects, adll vantages and capabilities as will hereafter appear and as are inherent in the construction disclosed herein. My invention further resides in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings and, while I have shown therein what is nowconsidered the preferred embodiment of this invention, I desire the same to be understood as illustrative only and not to be interpreted in a limiting sense.

In the drawings, annexed hereto and forming a part hereof,

Fig. l shows a plan View of my construction in position for use of the ironing board and with a part of the table broken away;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section through the structure shown in Fig. l, the same being taken through the hinge at the bottom of this iigure and looking toward the other hinge;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the table and 35 ironing board in closed position;

Fig. 4 is a transverse section taken substantially along the plane indicated by the line 4 4, Fig. 1.

Rereference will now be made in greater detail to the annexed drawings in which the table is denoted generally by the letter T and the ironing board by the letter I. The table comprises a plurality of legs 1, end pieces 2, side pieces 3, cross members 4 and 5 and table top sections 6 and 7. One of the end pieces of the table is i5 divided intoY three sections connected together by :means of hinges 8. These sections will be denoted specifically by the numerals 9, and ll.

The sections 6 and 'l of the table top are connected by hinges 12 which permit the top to be folded as shown in Fig. 2. A bracket 13 is secured to the section 7 of the table top and to this is pivotally connected a slotted link l4. This latter is slidably connected by means of the securing means 15 with a link 16 whichA is piv- Otally connected with the bracket 17 located on one of the sides 3 of the table. It is believed this will be entirely clear from Figs l and 2 of the drawings. The table is provided with drop l leaves 18 which are held in elevated position by 60 means of suitable holding means 19.

Supports or legs 20 are hinged to the cross pieces 4 and 5 by means of hinges 21 and are similarly connected to the section 22 of the iron- A ing board I by like hinges 2l. From Fig. 1 it 65 will be seen that all of the hinges 21 are placed diagonally ofthe axis of the ironing board, making an angle of approximately 45 degrees therewith. In this way, the ironing board will be carried both endwise and sidewise of the table as it is being lowered into same or raised out of same. Part or all of the hinges 21 may be spring hinges, if desired and as shown in Fig. l. As illustrated in Figs. 2, 3 and 4 these hinges are none of them i of the spring type. When spring hinges are used, they help to keep the ironing board from going down too rapidly and stopping with a jolt when it reaches the bottom of its course of travel.

As is apparent from Figs. 1, 2 and 3, a narrow strip 23 interve'nes between the ironing board 30 sections 22 and 24 and is secured to these sections by means of double` hinges 25. As will be apparent from Figs. 1 and 4, a handle 26 is fastended to the under side of the section 24 of the l ironing'board to assist in raising the latter out of the table and up into position illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2. An abutment 27 is provided on the cross piece 4 for the brace 28 to rest against so that the ironing board may be held up in operative position. This brace is pivotally connected to the section 22` of the ironing board by means of a hinge 29, as shown clearly in Fig. 2. When the ironing board is raised into its operative position, the brace 28 drops down against the face of the bracket 27 and automatically locks the iron- 95 ing board in raised position where it is ready for ironing.V The middle section of the hinges 25 serves to space the parts 22 and 24 of the ironing board so as to make room for the pad between these twoV sections when in folded position, as illustrated in Fig. 3. The strip 23 serves to space the sections of the ironing board and hold the same in such a position that its upper surface is substantially plane, when in operative position. Strips 30 are secured on the under side of "10 the sections 22 and 24 of the ironing board and abut each other in the plane of the strip 23, thus serving to reenforce the joint of the ironing board and prevent the outer end from sagging when in use. 110

The purpose of having the hinges 21 arranged diagonally is to bring the ironing board out so that its edge is substantially even with the side of the table when the drop-leaf 18 is in lowered position, as shown in Fig. 1. It is ordinarily desirable to have the other drop-leaf 18 in elevated position, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 4, to serve as a shelf upon which to place clothes which have been ironed and are folded ready to be put away. A pair of guide springs 32 are mounted on the under side of the table top adjacent its free edge to come down outside of the legs 1 and preventthe table top from sliding longitudinallyon top of the table body. These springs 32 make it possible that the table top will always be in correct position when closed up, as illustrated in Fig. 3. In order to insure that no accident will happen by reason of someone taking hold of the edge of the table top and attempting to lift the table thereby, it is necessary to provide latching means which will positively latch `the top to theside Vmember 2 of the table body. In order to accomplish this pins 33 are put into the member 2 for engagement by the latching member comprising a rod 34 having ends 35 turnedr at substantially a right angle to the length of the rod and provided with perforations for engagement with the pins 33. This rod is provided with a crank portion 36 which is arranged just under and near the edge 37 of the table top so that a person may grasp the edgeof` the table and press the crank l36 toward the under side thereof, thus turning the rod about its longitudinal axis and taking the perforated projections 35 away from the pins 33, and, in this way, releasing the arm 35 from the pins and unlatching the top so that it may be lifted. Since the major portion of one end of the table is disconnected from the rest thereof, this tends somewhat toward weakening the table at all of the way across the member 10 where its ends is secured in a depression in the upper edge of this strip. As illustrated in Fig. 2, this pre vents the strips 10 and 11 and the top sections 6 and 7 from dropping down so that the section 6 would strike against the legs of the table and mar the same.

It is believed that the operation of this device will be obvious from the drawings and the foregoing description without detailed explanation thereof and the same is therefore omitted. It is ofcourse understood that the specific description of structure set forth above may be departed vfrom without departing from the spirit of my invention as set forth in this specification and the appended claims.

Having now described my invention, I claim:

l. A structure as described, comprising a hollow support having supporting elements therein, pairs of supports pivotally mounted on said supporting elements to swing in a direction diagonal to the longitudinal axis of the support, an ironing board pivotally connected to said pairs of supports to be lowered into and raised out of said hollow support, and means to hold the ironing board in ele'- vated position.

2. A table comprising a body, a top, and supporting means, the body having side members, one of said side members being divided into a plurality of hingedly connectedsections, one of said sectionsbeing rigidly connected with the main part of the body and the others being turnable about the hinge connections so as to be let down at the side of the table, and the table top being foldable and hingedly connected to one of said sections so that the sections of the top may be let down to be suspended adjacent said side of the table.

3. rA structure for the purpose described, comprising a hollow support having pairs of supports pivotally mounted to swing with relation to said sup'port in a diagonal direction to the longitudinal axis of the support, an ironing board pivotally connected to said pairs of supports to be lowered into and raised out of said hollow support, and means to hold the ironing board in elevated position.

' PETER P. SPRINGER. 

